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Article EXPENDITURE AT THE BOYS' SCHOOL. Page 1 of 2 Article EXPENDITURE AT THE BOYS' SCHOOL. Page 1 of 2 →
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Expenditure At The Boys' School.
EXPENDITURE AT THE BOYS' SCHOOL .
TRULY " there is nothing new under the sun . Even one ' s ideas are but the re-echo of those of some one else , and it seems almost impossible toj secure anything like originality in any sphere of life . ;
We do not suppose we are singular m our experience in this direction , nor that there is one of our readers but has not found , at one time or another , his brightest thoughts put into the mouth of his neighbour , and
his best ideas worked on by strangers , before he has even had time to express them . An instance has just occurred to us . We had decided to look further into the statement of accounts and balance sheet just
issued by the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys , and were in hopes of being able to present such an attractive " other side " to the picture we gave last week as would prove that in some respects , at least ,
the Institution at Wood Green is being conducted on satisfactory lines , when a letter reached us from " AN OLD READER OF THE CHRONICLE , " which , in the words of the ordinary speaker at Masonic meetings , completely
took the wind out of our sails . Several of the points we had marked for consideration in our present article are touched upon there , and treated in much the same way as we intended to treat them . The result is , we must , to a certain extent , modify some of our
comments , so as to keep outside the arguments of our correspondent , who , we doubt not , will be pleased to find us so much in accord with his ideas . Our readers would do well to first read his letter , which appears elsewhere in this issue , and then
attempt to answer for themselves the question he propounds as to which of his two average " costs per annum " should be regarded as the one for consideration . Much can be said in support of the lower figure , and as much on behalf of the higher . After
all , whether we agree that the boys on the establishment cost £ 43 or £ 51 per annum each , there is no getting away from the fact that the higher figure represents the outlay of the year , and , with the best of desires to make thines aDnear as satisfactorv as
possible , we fail to see any reasonable plan of setting down the outlay at the lower figure . Last year those in authority spent £ 2000 odd in special sanitary improvements , baths , fire appliances , escapes , & c . This , and next year , and every
succeeding year , if the money is forthcoming , it will be spent in further improvements or new fangled notions , and so matters will go on , much as they have done in the past . But we must object to these special outlays being disregarded when an average is struck as to the cost per boy . If the sum referred to has resulted in
a permanent improvement in the value of the property of the Institution , then there can be no excuse for reckoning it in the total before striking the average . But if , as we imagine is most likely , an estimate of the value of the property to-day would produce no better results than was the case when it was set down
Expenditure At The Boys' School.
as worth £ 80 , 400 , then the outlay must be included in the current expenditure . Perhaps it might be more just to spread it over the accounts of
three , four , or even five years , but we do not anticipate this would make any difference a few years hence , as other items of special moment would continually arise . Improvements such as those under notice are
really on a par with "Repairs and Renewals , and we consider it unreasonable for a Committee , which saves money in one direction , only to expend it in another , to claim they have made any improvement in the working of an Institution , until they can show
a reduction on the average per head , calculated on the total outlay . Looking at the individual items of the expenditure account we are pleased to see an apparent improvement all round ; and if it only lasts , and the Committee will be content to keep matters going along quietly ,
rather than seek for expensive outlets m the way of improvements and additions , there is every reason to hope that the report of the present year will come as a gratifying surprise to many of us ; but there is that
fearful craving for improvement in a new Board ot Management to be overcome , and we almost fear it is impossible to get along without a regular repetition of the " Special" items which form just now a bone of
contention among supporters of the Institution , and have such a terrible effect on the average of the year , increasing it from £ 43 to £ 51 per boy . It will no doubt be in the minds of our readers that the accounts , as set out in the report of the Committee
of Investigation gave a gross expenditure of £ 13 , 107 14 s 4 d for 258 Boys , the various subdivisions being as given below . We have added the totals for last year , from the accounts just published , subdivided in the same manner , as far as we are able , and these figures will no doubt render it easy for our readers to compare for themselves what is being done now alongside of
what was done a few years back . It must be understood , however , that the figures in both cases are open to grave criticism , from the fact that they represent actual payments , without any regard to outstanding indebtedness , either at the beginning or the close of
the financial year . Our correspondent shows how this would affect the later total by £ 850 17 s 2 d , how far it would add to or detract from the earlier figures it is impossible to say .
GrosB Expend lture . Committee of Investigation Accounts of Accounts . 1890 .
258 Boys . 264 Boys . Office 1829 7 3 1813 6 0 Salaries and Wages 2360 13 3 2210 4 7 Provisions 3019 9 3 2651 13 2
Clothing 1704 10 11 1262 1 3 Education and maintenance of children outside , or outfits on leaving Institution 124 7 0 488 2 4
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Expenditure At The Boys' School.
EXPENDITURE AT THE BOYS' SCHOOL .
TRULY " there is nothing new under the sun . Even one ' s ideas are but the re-echo of those of some one else , and it seems almost impossible toj secure anything like originality in any sphere of life . ;
We do not suppose we are singular m our experience in this direction , nor that there is one of our readers but has not found , at one time or another , his brightest thoughts put into the mouth of his neighbour , and
his best ideas worked on by strangers , before he has even had time to express them . An instance has just occurred to us . We had decided to look further into the statement of accounts and balance sheet just
issued by the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys , and were in hopes of being able to present such an attractive " other side " to the picture we gave last week as would prove that in some respects , at least ,
the Institution at Wood Green is being conducted on satisfactory lines , when a letter reached us from " AN OLD READER OF THE CHRONICLE , " which , in the words of the ordinary speaker at Masonic meetings , completely
took the wind out of our sails . Several of the points we had marked for consideration in our present article are touched upon there , and treated in much the same way as we intended to treat them . The result is , we must , to a certain extent , modify some of our
comments , so as to keep outside the arguments of our correspondent , who , we doubt not , will be pleased to find us so much in accord with his ideas . Our readers would do well to first read his letter , which appears elsewhere in this issue , and then
attempt to answer for themselves the question he propounds as to which of his two average " costs per annum " should be regarded as the one for consideration . Much can be said in support of the lower figure , and as much on behalf of the higher . After
all , whether we agree that the boys on the establishment cost £ 43 or £ 51 per annum each , there is no getting away from the fact that the higher figure represents the outlay of the year , and , with the best of desires to make thines aDnear as satisfactorv as
possible , we fail to see any reasonable plan of setting down the outlay at the lower figure . Last year those in authority spent £ 2000 odd in special sanitary improvements , baths , fire appliances , escapes , & c . This , and next year , and every
succeeding year , if the money is forthcoming , it will be spent in further improvements or new fangled notions , and so matters will go on , much as they have done in the past . But we must object to these special outlays being disregarded when an average is struck as to the cost per boy . If the sum referred to has resulted in
a permanent improvement in the value of the property of the Institution , then there can be no excuse for reckoning it in the total before striking the average . But if , as we imagine is most likely , an estimate of the value of the property to-day would produce no better results than was the case when it was set down
Expenditure At The Boys' School.
as worth £ 80 , 400 , then the outlay must be included in the current expenditure . Perhaps it might be more just to spread it over the accounts of
three , four , or even five years , but we do not anticipate this would make any difference a few years hence , as other items of special moment would continually arise . Improvements such as those under notice are
really on a par with "Repairs and Renewals , and we consider it unreasonable for a Committee , which saves money in one direction , only to expend it in another , to claim they have made any improvement in the working of an Institution , until they can show
a reduction on the average per head , calculated on the total outlay . Looking at the individual items of the expenditure account we are pleased to see an apparent improvement all round ; and if it only lasts , and the Committee will be content to keep matters going along quietly ,
rather than seek for expensive outlets m the way of improvements and additions , there is every reason to hope that the report of the present year will come as a gratifying surprise to many of us ; but there is that
fearful craving for improvement in a new Board ot Management to be overcome , and we almost fear it is impossible to get along without a regular repetition of the " Special" items which form just now a bone of
contention among supporters of the Institution , and have such a terrible effect on the average of the year , increasing it from £ 43 to £ 51 per boy . It will no doubt be in the minds of our readers that the accounts , as set out in the report of the Committee
of Investigation gave a gross expenditure of £ 13 , 107 14 s 4 d for 258 Boys , the various subdivisions being as given below . We have added the totals for last year , from the accounts just published , subdivided in the same manner , as far as we are able , and these figures will no doubt render it easy for our readers to compare for themselves what is being done now alongside of
what was done a few years back . It must be understood , however , that the figures in both cases are open to grave criticism , from the fact that they represent actual payments , without any regard to outstanding indebtedness , either at the beginning or the close of
the financial year . Our correspondent shows how this would affect the later total by £ 850 17 s 2 d , how far it would add to or detract from the earlier figures it is impossible to say .
GrosB Expend lture . Committee of Investigation Accounts of Accounts . 1890 .
258 Boys . 264 Boys . Office 1829 7 3 1813 6 0 Salaries and Wages 2360 13 3 2210 4 7 Provisions 3019 9 3 2651 13 2
Clothing 1704 10 11 1262 1 3 Education and maintenance of children outside , or outfits on leaving Institution 124 7 0 488 2 4